


My Saddle's Waiting

by VeraBAdler



Series: October 2019 challenges [28]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Cowboy Hats, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-29
Updated: 2019-10-29
Packaged: 2021-01-06 03:47:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 984
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21220055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VeraBAdler/pseuds/VeraBAdler
Summary: Dean takes his little brother to the fair, and encounters a familiar face.Prompt 1: RidePrompt 2: "The Deep"





	My Saddle's Waiting

Dean is in Hell.

There is no other possible explanation. At some point, without him noticing, he must have been dragged to Hell. And now here he is, trapped for all eternity at a cut-rate county fair while his ten-year-old little brother yanks him from ride to snack stand to ride with no hope of escape for his mortal soul.

"C'mon, Dean!"

The traction on his arm increases yet again, and the ache in his shoulder intensifies. Fighting exhaustion, he lets himself be tugged towards a stand selling peach sweet tea and– 

"Yess, funnel cakes!! Should we get one with ice cream an' strawberries? Or, ooo! The chocolate eclair kind, with vanilla pudding an' chocolate sauce? Or maybe one of each?"

Dean puts up a hand. "How 'bout just a plain one, Sammy?" he begs. "I'm still dizzy from that ride where they drop you from the top of the tower."

"You mean The Deep?" Sam asks with a smirk. "We rode that like half an hour ago. You're still feelin' it? Guess that ride's not safe for the elderly."

Dean whacks him on the back of the head. "Hey, watch your mouth, shrimp. I ain't no old man, but I _am_ old enough to have earned some respect."

The kid has the audacity to roll his eyes at him. "Sure, okay, Dean. You're gonna have to be a lot older than sixteen before I respect you."

"Whatever." Dean's tired of this conversation, like he's tired of this day, and if he has to split a funnel cake right now he thinks he might drop dead of a grease overdose. "How about we leave the fried dough for later, okay? For now, what about, uhh..." He casts his eyes around the nearby attractions, looking for something that _won't_ leave him half-nauseated. Then he sees it – _perfect_. "What about that?" He gestures triumphantly, and his brother follows his pointing hand to the colorful sign that says– 

"_Pony rides?_" The kid's voice is dripping with disdain. "I'm not a little kid any more, Dean."

"No, man, I know you're not. But you still like animals, right? And it looks like they've got some bigger horses there for kids your size. Just... _C'mon_." He grabs on to Sammy's hand, and now Dean is the one in the lead, his brother the reluctant dead weight being pulled along behind.

They reach the corral, and Dean is pleased to note that, unlike at some of the flashier rides at the fair, there is no line of people waiting. The attendant is a guy around his height, decked out in full Western gear: jeans, chaps, boots, Stetson hat – the works. He has his back to them as he adjusts the bridle on one of the smaller ponies on the lot. _Jesus, that's a nice ass_, Dean thinks. “Excuse me, sir?” is what he says out loud, though, because he's not a heathen. The guy turns around and– 

“Cas?” Dean's ashamed of the way his voice cracks, but he's too surprised to control it. Castiel Novak is the cutest boy at their school, _way_ out of Dean's league, and Dean's been crushing on him for months. The shock of seeing him here, head to toe in full cowboy gear like he's stepped out of one of Dean's dirtiest fantasies, is almost more than his heart can handle.

Cas beams at him. “Hello, Dean. And hello...?” He turns to Sam and cocks his head.

“Oh, this is my little brother, Sammy. Sammy, this is Cas. He's in my homeroom, and I have Chemistry with him.” _Understatement_, his brain mutters, helpfully supplying him with a sizzle reel of their hours spent as lab partners – the inside jokes, the maybe-flirtations, the connection that Dean's always felt between them but never had the guts to act on.

Cas tips his hat at the boy. “Hello, Sammy.”

“Just Sam's fine, thanks. Hi. Are these _your_ horses?” Despite his earlier attitude, it's clear he's enthralled by the animals.

“No, I'm just helping out here for the day. The owner is a friend of my family, and I work on his farm a couple weekends a month. Today the ride is short-staffed and he needed a hand. Would you like to come meet the horses?” He opens the gate, and Sam goes eagerly into the pen with him.

Dean watches as Cas helps his brother onto the back of a mare that's colored like caramel and cream. “Her name's Poppy,” he confides as he demonstrates how to guide her with the reins. Once Sam is happily ambling around the enclosure, Cas comes back out through the gate to stand next to Dean.

“It's nice to see you, Dean” he murmurs, glancing at him from under the brim of his hat.

“Yeah, you too, Cas.” While he's ransacking his brain for a topic of conversation, Dean keeps his eyes on his brother, watches him ride Poppy around in a circle with a look of pure peace on his chubby face. “Did... Did you get the Chem homework done yet?”

“No, I still have the second problem set to do. You?”

“Same. So... Um...” _What the heck_, he thinks. _Might as well ask him what I really wanna ask_. “Does that cowboy getup belong to the guy that owns the ride, or...?”

“Oh, no, these clothes are mine,” comes Cas's answer. “I wear them when I work on the farm.”

Dean flushes bright red and stammers, “W-wow, you, uh... You look good.”

Cas grins, _and are his cheeks a little pink, too?_ “Thank you, Dean. So do you, as usual.” He turns away suddenly, and Dean watches in amazement as Cas's ears turn bright red. 

The knowledge that Cas is just as shy around him as he is around Cas gives him the nerve to ask..

“Hey, Cas, you wanna maybe split a peach sweet tea later?”

“I'd love to.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is actually a fill to a prompt [I made five years ago](https://beanmom.tumblr.com/post/92192357012/destiel-fic-prompt-hs-au-dean-takes-kidsam-to). I figured it was time _somebody_ filled it!
> 
> Rebloggable link for this fic on tumblr is [here](https://blessyourhondahurley.tumblr.com/post/188666227371/october-28-my-saddles-waiting).


End file.
